Shadows of the Broken Divine
by DarkWarriorMinerva
Summary: When a young boy named Wally Kincaid starts his training to achieve his dream of becoming a knight, he soon learns that there's a truly sinister side to the the world he thought he knew so well, and becomes part of a team of six to obtain the mythical treasure known as the Soulpiece, and to keep it out the wrong hands...
1. Chapter 1

"Hello?" a voice spoke to the green-haired young boy as he awoke in a bed an unfamiliar room. His eyes fluttered a bit and he let out a slight groan as he sat up and noticed a tall young man with neck-length black hair and gray eyes standing next to the bed, staring down at him.

"Bonjour," said the man, giving him a smile and slight wave.

"Hey..." the boy responded with a puzzled look on his face, "Who are you?"

"Calem Beaumont is the name," the man replied with a slight smirk on his face, "And you?"

"M-my name is... W-Wally... Wally Kincaid..." the child responded nervously.

Calem let out a loud laugh, "Is that short for Wallace or Walter?"

"No! It's just Wally!" Wally replied. He then looked over to his left and noticed his Gardevoir, Perseus, was floating by the bed next to him.

"Oh, I didn't noticed your Gardevoir there. What's her name?" Calem asked.

Perseus wore an indignant expression on his face.

"_His_ name is Perseus!" Wally exclaimed.

Calem let out another hearty laugh and said, "A male Gardevoir, seriously? He could've been a Gallade!"

Wally copied Perseus's facial expression, "Don't judge us, Calem! He's my very first Pokémon! He's also my best friend! I like him just the way he is!"

Calem chuckled a bit, "Whatever, Wally," he replied, "But that's beside the point. Tell me a bit about yourself."

"Uh..." Wally hesitated. _Who am I exactly? I don't really know..._

"What exactly do you want to know about me?" he asked.

"First of all, how old are you?"

"Fourteen."

"I see," Calem pondered, "Can you tell me a bit about your family?"

Wally swallowed hard, "I-I d-don't r-really know... I don't really know why... but I really don't remember much about my family... or even myself for that matter... The only thing I really remember is that I had two friends named May and Brendan..." he said before erupting into a coughing fit.

"Woah! Are you okay?!" Calem questioned.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Wally answered as his coughing subsided, "I have asthma."

"Ah..." Calem tapped his chin in thought.

"Anyways," Wally inquired, "What am I doing here? How did I get here? What is this place, anyway?"

Calem looked into Wally's eyes intently and said, "I found you all beaten up on the side of the road, it looked as if you had been attacked by some wild Mightyena."

"Oh," Wally replied, looking at the bandages placed on different areas of his arms and torso. He then turned back to Calem and asked, "What about you? Why did you save me? Where am I, anyway?"

"Well..." Calem stated, "You're in the infirmary of the soldiers' living quarters. You see, I'm a knight, mon ami."

That last sentence put a starry-eyed expression on Wally's face. Since he was a young child – and by that he meant as far back as he could possibly remember from the little bits and pieces memory he had – he had been completely entranced with the knights of the kingdom of Mianna.

"Oh my Arceus! Are you really a knight?!" Wally exclaimed brightly. He had always wanted to be a knight since he was a child, he was now old enough to become an apprentice, but his less than perfect health had prevented from ever becoming a fighter.

"Yep!" Calem responded, "I can see that really impressed you, didn't it?"

"Oh, yeah! I've always been fascinated with the Miannan knights!" Wally exclaimed, "Always wanted to be one, too..." he mumbled at the end.

Calem gave the boy an inquisitive glance, "Are you saying that you want to become my apprentice?" he asked.

Wally returned his question with a wide-eyed expression, "Really? Can I? Because that would be great!" he replied excitedly.

Calem pondered Wally's request, "I don't know... Training is really hard... And you just told me that you have asthma..."

"I can handle it! Trust me! I'm a lot stronger than I look!" Wally reassured him, "Please? This is my _dream_!"

Calem's lips curled into a warm smile, "Okay, I'll sponsor your apprenticeship. Just remember that this isn't an endeavor to be taken lightly."

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" he responded elatedly. _This can't be real!_ Wally thought to himself, _I'm finally going to prove myself as a warrior!_

Calem smiled and let out a slight laugh, "I've never seen an applicant so enthusiastic about joining. As long as you realize what you're getting into, I would love to see you become a true warrior."

He then took a few steps towards the door, glanced back at Wally, "You rest up, your body needs to be working in tip-top shape when you begin your battle training," Calem said to him as he left the room.

After Calem shut the infirmary door, Wally turned to Perseus wearing the same starry-eyed expression on his face and said, "Did you hear that?! He's gonna train me to be a knight!"

"I don't know, Wally..." Perseus spoke to him telepathically, "I have a bad feeling about this guy..."

"Whataya mean, 'bad feeling'?" Wally asked, "He seems nice enough..."

Perseus shot Wally a concerned look, "You don't understand, do you?"

"What is it that I'm not understanding?" Wally inquired.

Perseus closed his eyes, "I'm a psychic-type, remember? I have a heightened sense of intuition. I can just tell that there's some sinister energy floating around this Calem dude..."

"I realize that you don't like him, man," Wally responded, "But this is my _dream_! I may _never_ get this opportunity again!"

Perseus sighed, "It's up to you, Wally. I just hope you know what you're getting yourself into..."


	2. Chapter 2

Seventeen-year-old Lyra Hollycon shuffled down the edge of the city street, gazing downward at the large stones that made up the surface of the road. She had been intolerably bitter and depressed for the past moon and a half, after the death of her lover Ethan under mysterious circumstances.

She was wearing purple and forest green traditional sorceress' robes, with several pouches attached to it, holding various herbs, crystals, runes, and charms, with an indigo hooded cloak, her trademark poofy white hat with the red ribbon, and a black velvet choker with a large emerald with a mysterious inscription in it, set in silver, attached to the velvet band.

"Wait a second," she spoke to herself, focusing on her magical senses, "I feel something dark floating around..."

"Miss?" a voice asked her. Lyra turned around and saw a tall, pale young man with long red hair and silver eyes.

"Is something wrong?" the man inquired, placing his hand on her shoulder, "You look a bit apprehensive, milady..." he added.

_What the hell is up with this guy?_ She thought to herself, wondering what caused him to approach a random person and start asking them questions.

"Who the hell are you?!" Lyra demanded, "What do you want with me?!"

"Oh, I'm sorry," the man apologized, "My name is Silver Ruby. What about you? What's your name?" he asked.

"My name is Lyra Hollycon," Lyra responded, "But that's beside the point, why the hell did you just walk up to some random person and start asking them questions?"

Silver averted his gaze slightly, "I can't really explain why, exactly," he said, with a slight blush of embarrassment, "But I just knew that there was something about you, something important, something to do with the Soulpiece..."

He immediately covered his mouth, as if to cancel out the last part of his sentence, the humiliation evident on his face.

"Uh– I'm sorry!– Please just forget I brought that up!" Silver stuttered. He clearly knew full well that it was a huge taboo to talk about the Soulpiece in public, especially with a stranger.

"It's okay. No big deal," Lyra responded.

"Who are you talking to, Silver?" a female voice called out to him. Lyra turned her head to see a blue-haired young woman with matching-colored eyes wearing battle armor. She wore her hair in pigtails, similar to the ones Lyra once wore.

"Hey, Kris!" Silver greeted the woman, giving her a peck on the cheek. _This must be Silver's girlfriend..._ Lyra thought to herself.

"Not in public!" the woman shouted at Silver, moving her face away from his lips abruptly.

"Oh, sorry. That always keeps slipping my mind," Silver responded, placing a hand on the back of his head, looking slightly embarrassed.

"Well you need to find a way to keep it in your mind, or else we're both screwed!" the woman exclaimed.

"What the hell are you two talking about?" Lyra asked the couple, completely clueless about the conversation was unfolding in front of her.

The woman glanced over at Lyra, realizing that she had just heard the whole conversation between them, and stormed over towards her and grabbed her by the shoulder.

"Looks like the Skitty's outta the bag here, so I _really_ need you to keep our relationship a secret, got it?" the woman whispered sternly to Lyra.

"Okay..." Lyra responded uneasily, "But why must it be a secret?" she asked.

"You see," the woman replied, "Silver and I are both soldiers in Mianna's military, but the military has draconian no-fraternization rules, so if anyone finds out that we're dating, we could lose our jobs! So that's why it needs to be a secret, capisce?!"

Lyra swallowed hard, "I understand. I wouldn't even know who to tell... Not that I would tell anyone..." she replied.

The woman smiled, "Good. Anyways, sorry for being so intimidating earlier, my name is Crystal Bethany Mathers, but I prefer to be called Kris. But that's beside the point, what's your name?"

"M-my n-name i-is L-Lyra..." Lyra stuttered, still somewhat ill at ease from Kris's fierce demeanor, "Lyra Dianna Hollycon."

"Nice to meet you, Lyra." Kris replied, "By the way, what were you and Silver talking about, anyway?" she asked.

Lyra inhaled a sharp breath, "He said something about the Soulpiece, I don't know what he was going to say about it, but it sounded interesting."

Kris shot Silver an icy glare, "Do you not have any filter whatsoever?!"

Silver smiled sheepishly, "I guess not..."

Then, just as Kris turned back to Lyra to say something to her, Silver let out a piercing yelp. Lyra and Kris turned their heads to see Silver on the ground, flailing against a cloud of dark energy.

"Oh my god!" Kris exclaimed.

Lyra stepped forward, "Don't worry! I got this!" she then muttered an incantation under her breath and reached her hand outward as a mist of light energy drifted out from it, moving over to the dark cloud and causing it to dissipate.

Silver stood up, dusted himself off, walked over to the women, and said, "Wow! That was incredible! Are you a light sorceress?"

Lyra shrugged, "I've been able to use all six elements pretty well. I'm still teaching myself, though."

"Hmm..." Kris pondered, "If that's the case, maybe I could help you get into the knights' library. They have a lot of good information about sorcery."

"Yeah," Lyra replied, "That sounds good."


	3. Chapter 3

"Hey..." a flirtatious voice spoke to the young woman whom called herself May Rael. It was her boyfriend, Brendan Birch, speaking to her from just outside the large palace bedroom window.

"What brings you here tonight, stranger?" May responded in an equally enticing tone, "It's been a while since I've seen you..."

"Well, it wasn't exactly easy to stay away..." the young man responded, climbing into the bedroom through the open window and sat down next to his girlfriend on the ornate bed.

"It's so good to see you again..." Brendan growled seductively, placing his hand on her thigh and amorously interlocking his lips with hers.

But suddenly, there was a loud knock at May's bedroom door.

"Go away!" May shouted at the door.

"Not gonna happen!" a female voice called out from the other side, a voice that May immediately recognized as her attendant, "I'll give you a little time, but your father really needs to talk to you!"

"Oh crap! I gotta hide!" Brendan panicked, swiftly jumping underneath the bed, making sure that he was completely concealed by the bed skirt.

"Come in..." May grumbled irritably.

The knob on the door on the other side of the room turned, the door flew open, and the attendant sauntered into the young woman's bedroom.

"Hello, Falynn," the attendant spoke to her.

"Hello, Adele," May grumbled in response, despising the fact that she had just been referred to my the name given to her at birth.

Adele smiled, "Your father would like to speak with you," she stated.

"Oh..." May moaned in dismay, "Do I have to talk to him?" May had always hated her father Norman, especially after her uncle Steven had taken the throne of Mianna, much to the disillusionment of Norman.

"Yes, you do," Adele replied with a warm smile and a slight laugh. May swore under her breath as Adele stood up and let Norman into May's bedroom.

"Ugh..." May groaned in irritation, "What the hell do you want, Dad?"

Norman simply scowled at his daughter, "Watch your language, Falynn," he scolded her, "Princesses don't swear."

May rolled her eyes, "Whatever..." she grumbled.

Norman continued to give her the same disgruntled expression, "Show some respect, Falynn!" he snapped at her.

"Sorry..." May groaned sarcastically.

"Anyways," Norman continued, "There's several events coming up and it's of the utmost importance that you..."

At that point, May zoned out completely, entirely uninterested in her father's insipid prattling, droning on and on about things that she didn't find even remotely important, yet he seemed to think it was totally vital for... whatever...

"Are you even listening to me?!" Norman shouted, clearly perturbed by May's obvious disinterest in his incessant jabbering on her 'royal duties', completely unaware of how much she absolutely _hated_ being a princess.

"To be perfectly honest, I wasn't!" May countered, "Shut the hell up, unless you have something important to say!" she yelled at her father.

Norman glared at his daughter, "This is _incredibly_ important! Do you even understand what being a princess is all about?!" he exclaimed.

May angrily stood up, looked her father in the eye, and screamed, "I DIDN'T EVEN WANT TO BE A PRINCESS!"

Norman inhaled a sharp breath, "Whether you wanted to be one or not, Falynn, it doesn't change the fact that you are a princess, so start acting like one!"

May furiously pointed at her bedroom door, "GET OUTTA MY ROOM!" she shrieked.

Norman simply narrowed his eyes, "Fine," he said, "But I'm only dropping the subject until tomorrow. We're coming back to this in the morning."

An idea instantly popped into May's head, "Don't even bother, Dad!" she retaliated, "Because you'll never see me again!"

"Don't hit me with that again!" Norman responded, "You've said that multiple times before, and each time you disappear for a little while, but I always finds you back here soon afterwards!"

"Trust me! I ain't bluffing this time!" May exclaimed, "I'll be gone before you know it! Now get outta my sight!"

"Fine. I'll leave," said Norman, walking towards the door and exiting his daughter's bedroom.

After Norman was long gone, Brendan crawled out from underneath May's bed, coughing and gasping for fresh air.

"God! I couldn't breathe under there!" he blurted out. Turning to May, he then said, "Were you being honest? Are you really going to make your escape permanent?"

"Yep," she replied as she sauntered into her large walk-in closet, opened up a secret compartment hidden inside, where she'd hidden the clothes and tools she uses for her 'secret profession' so the cleaning slaves wouldn't find them.

May then switched from the fancy clothing typically worn by royalty to the much more rough-and-tough outfit of her secret profession, as a bounty hunter and assassin.

She slipped into her black bodysuit, strapped on her belt that had two knife sheaths attached to it, containing two daggers, as well as bottles of various assorted poisons, perfect for hunting down and killing criminals, laced up her black combat-style boots, and put on her black hooded cloak.

"You ready?" May asked Brendan, wearing a devious smirk on her face.

"Oh yeah!" Brendan responded.

"Then let's get the hell outta here!" she exclaimed cheekily.

So the couple climbed out the bedroom window, scaled down the palace wall, and made their escape from May's boring royal life and into a far more interesting life.

But it would end up being far more serious that either of them could've ever predicted.


	4. Chapter 4

"My, my, my..." Calem stated as he removed Wally's bandages, "Looks like you've healed quite nicely."

"Huh, I guess so," Wally replied meekly, "So... what about my application? What did they say?"

"Oh! I forgot to tell you!" Calem responded brightly, "The higher-ups accepted your application! You're gonna start training on Monday!"

Wally once again put on his fan-boyish, starry-eyed facial expression, "Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god! I've gotta be dreaming! This is AWESOME!" he exclaimed delightedly.

Calem chuckled slightly, "You're dreaming, are you? Do you want me to pinch you, then?" he asked.

"Hell no!" Wally declared excitedly, "If I really am dreaming, I wanna go on with it for as long as possible!"

"Well, don't strain yourself too much from excitement, now," Calem put forth with a slight laugh and a smile, "Like I said on the first day, your body needs to be working in optimum condition when you start your battle training."

"So..." Wally added, "Is there anything to read around here...?" he asked.

"Oh yeah!" Calem responded, "The knights' quarters have a huge library full of books on just about every topic out there!"

"Really? Because I would love to see it!" Wally requested.

Calem smiled, "Of course!" he replied,"That's rather interesting. You don't really seem like the bookish type at first glance," he added, laughing slightly.

Wally let out a nervous giggle, "I may not have much memory of my past," he said, "But I _do_ remember reading a lot."

"Hmm..." Calem pondered.

"It's funny," Wally added, once again with the nervous giggle, "My parents wouldn't let me get too far away from them very often, and I was often confined to my bedroom, so I didn't have much to do other than read..."

"Well then, I'll take you down to the library," Calem continued, "I can safely assure you that you won't be disappointed."

So they walked down to the ground floor and entered the knight's library.

"Ooh!" Wally spoke in awe upon seeing the sheer immensity of the content available within the library, looking up to the top of the high walls, and asked "Do you know how to get to the books at the top?"

"Well, let me show you," Calem replied, sauntering towards a large book on a podium in the center of the library, motioning for Wally to approach.

"This here is the catalog," Calem said to Wally as he made his way towards him, "You just flip through it, look for the book you want, tap the icon next to the title, and it'll come to you!" he explained as he demonstrated the process, causing a book to fly off a high shelf and gently land on the podium.

"That's really cool, but how do you put it back?" Wally questioned.

"That's easy, just place the book in the tray and it'll fly back into its proper spot!" Calem responded, once again demonstrating for Wally.

"Awesome! Can I look for books now?" Wally asked.

"Of course! Be my guest!" Calem replied in a kind tone, stepping aside so Wally could use the catalog.

So then Wally flipped through the catalog and was absolutely fascinated by all the books available in the library. So many books about myths, gods, and heroes from far away lands, the ones he'd read as a child, and more.

He continued to flip through the pages of the catalog, and his eyes widened in excitement when he came to the section on magic and sorcery. Just as with mythology, one the greatest of his major obsessions was sorcery. He just loved it for some reason, despite the fact that he possessed no magical talent.

As he found some books that he was interested in reading and called a few of them off the shelves, out of the corner of his left eye, he saw a beautiful young woman with chocolate-brown hair, dressed in sorceress' clothing and a poofy white hat with a red ribbon, chatting with a blue-haired female knight.

"Excuse me!" the knight snapped at Wally, "Why the hell are you staring at us?! That's really rude, you know!"

"Oh... I'm sorry..." Wally replied sheepishly, feeling slightly embarrassed. That was one of his more distressing flaws, a problem with prolonged staring at women without realizing it, mistakenly believing himself to be simply catching a quick glance.

"Settle down, Kris. No need to get your panties in a twist," Calem interjected, "He _is_ a teenager after all. Besides, he barely remembers who he is."

The woman took a second glance at Wally, and then turned to Calem, "Oh, so this is the new apprentice of yours?" she said, smiling warmly.

"Yep!" Calem responded, wearing a prideful grin, "Out of all the young men and women who've applied for apprenticeship, Wally here is by far the most enthusiastic!"

The woman approached Wally with a smile on her face, "Calem's told me a lot about you! How are you doing today, Mr. Amnesia?" she asked.

"I'm doing pretty good..." Wally stated nervously, trying his hardest not to stare at the sorceress standing behind the knight.

"Nice to meet you, Wally," the knight replied, "My name is Crystal Bethany Mathers, but I prefer to be called Kris in casual scenarios."

"Pleased to meet you, Crystal," Wally responded shyly, twirling the hair that was hanging in front of his right ear. It was a bad habit of his, something he often did when he was embarrassed or nervous.

"Please, Wally. Call me Kris," she corrected.

"Oh. Sorry," Wally replied.

The sorceress that Kris was previously speaking with then took notice of Wally, approaching them and asking, "Why, who might this be here?" with a slight smile on her face.

"Uh... I... Er... Um..." Wally stuttered helplessly, practically losing his ability to speak, completely mesmerized by her beauty.

"English! Do you speak it?!" the woman exclaimed.

Wally then snapped back to reality and said, "Actually, yes. I do speak English," laughing slightly.

"What's your name, little guy?" she spoke to him in a kind voice.

"My name's Wally... Wally Kincaid..." he replied shyly trying his damned hardest not to stare at her, "What's your name?" he asked nervously, swallowing hard.

The woman smiled warmly, "My name is Lyra Dianna Hollycon," she said, "Nice to meet you, little guy," she added, causing Wally's demeanor to melt into an icky mush and his face to turn the color of a strawberry.

"Are you okay, Wally?" Lyra asked.

"I... uh..." Wally stammered as he cupped his face in embarrassment and ran off to avoid embarrassing himself further.

Calem soon took notice of Lyra and approached Kris, "What is she doing here? This library isn't open to the public," he muttered to her.

"Don't worry, Calem," Kris responded, "I got authorization for her. She has permission to be here."

Calem shrugged, "If you say so..."

Then, another person approached the group. A young man with a pale complexion, shoulder-length, dark red hair and silver eyes. Wally looked him over and examined his outfit. _He must be an archer..._ he thought to himself, based off the man's boots and indigo and red coat.

"Hey, Calem. Hey, Kris," the archer spoke to the two of them. He then glanced at Lyra and said, "Hello, Lyra. Nice to see you again,"

"Hello," Lyra replied.

He then turned back to Kris, "I see that you were able to get our prodigy into the library," he said

"Prodigy, eh?" Calem asked, "Care to explain?"

"Most definitely," the archer responded, "Honestly, I've never seen a mage that could harness and apply her magic so effectively without using a wand or staff. I didn't even know it was possible to be able to do so without a medium!"

"Well, I have a staff that I normally use," Lyra interjected, looking slightly embarrassed from the archer's flattery, "I just didn't think that there was enough time to draw it out," she added while holding out her right hand, revealing the ring that she uses to summon her staff.

A very useful form of magic that has been utilized in the kingdom of Mianna, as well as other kingdoms and nations, rings that contain magical weapons that can be summoned at just about any time, that ranged from arcane, such as the aforementioned staves, to martial weapons, such as swords, lances, bows, and other weapons that were bothersome to carry around all the time.

"Well, either way, I'm still impressed!" the archer replied. He then turned toward Calem, "By the way, Calem," the man inquired, "A little Pidgey told me that you've recently gotten a new apprentice. I'd like to meet him."

"Oh, yeah!" Calem responded, "He's sitting over there," he added, gesturing towards Wally, "Why don't you introduce yourself?"

The man then walked up to Wally, who was sitting on one of the library's several couches, thumbing through the books that he'd pulled off the shelves moments ago.

"Hello, are you Calem's new apprentice?" he asked.

Wally glanced up at the man and swallowed hard, "Y-Yes. I-I am," he said.

"What's your name, anyway?" the man added, extending his hand outward for a handshake.

"My name is Wally..." Wally responded, meeting his handshake, "Wally Ezra Kincaid..."

The man smiled, "Pleased to meet you, Wally. My name is Silver Kain Ruby," he replied, "Maybe I should introduce you to Lyra and Kris," he added.

A nervous giggle escaped Wally's mouth, "I've already met them, thanks anyway," he stated. He was _not_ going to embarrass himself further in front of Lyra with his rapidly vanishing social skills whenever he tried to talk to her.

Silver placed his hand on Wally's shoulder, "Well, it was nice to meet you, Wally. See you around," he said as he walked away to continue speaking with the others, leaving Wally to read his books.

As Silver removed himself from Wally's presence, his mind began to wander to the information that his heightened magical senses had gathered that his brain was firing off.

Since he was a child, Silver had always been able to read other people's auras, as well as perfectly identify people's energy signatures, unique spiritual energy patterns that each human and Pokémon had that was all their own.

But the auras that gave him chills down his spine was the energy radiated by demons.

And that's exactly what he felt in Wally.

Not entirely, though. He was still unquestionably human, but just... he seemed to be somewhere in the middle.

_Could it be.. a Demonheart?_ Silver wondered. It's said that some of the more benevolent demons would save the lives of people involved in accidents and disasters, and granting them special powers.

_No. This demon aura is far too strong._ Silver concluded. Wally was a demon... yet was still a human at the same time...

_I'm overthinking this..._ Silver thought to himself. _The boy is far too innocent to be a threat to my safety..._

But he knew that he still had keep it in the back of his mind, just in case.


	5. Chapter 5

"I'm really hungry..." Wally mumbled, his stomach growling slightly, "Is there anything to eat around here?" he asked.

"Well, we could go into the city and look for somewhere to get a bite to eat," Calem replied.

"That's the best idea I heard all day!" Wally exclaimed pleasantly.

Calem couldn't really explain it, but seeing little Wally smile and in such a good mood made him feel pleased himself. It reminded him of the son that... almost was...

Those contented feelings quickly vanished as the painful memories associated with the good ones rose to the surface, causing feelings of sorrow to well up in Calem's heart.

_Just if I could've saved her... from a fate that's far too sad... Maybe I should just try to avoid thinking about it... but that's easier said than done..._

"Are you okay, Calem?" Wally asked the man, eyes bright and curious, "You seem kind of upset..." he added, concern evident in his voice and facial expression.

Wally's sprightly voice almost instantly caused Calem's wandering mind to snap back to reality.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Calem lied, faking a convincing smile. _He would never understand..._ Calem thought to himself, _The boy is far too naive and innocent to comprehend the pain of losing the one you love the most..._

"So..." Wally started, "Aren't we going to go out and get some food?"

"Oh. Yeah," Calem replied, "My mind just wanders, sometimes," he said with a slight laugh, "It's just when I'm reminded of something, I start thinking about it and a bunch of other things related to it and then, well... yeah..." he added, shrugging slightly.

"So can we go now? I'm really hungry..." Wally whined, placing a hand on his stomach.

Calem smiled, "Of course!" he responded. He started down the hallway, motioning for Wally to follow him, "C'mon, Wally. We need to check with the receptionist at the front and let the higher-ups know where we're going."

"Okay!" Wally chirped as he chased Calem down the hallway, making their way to the receptionist's desk.

"Oh!" the receptionist spoke to Calem, "Is this the new apprentice that you've taken under your wing?"

Calem grinned, "Yep!" he responded, "He's far more enthusiastic about his apprenticeship than any of the other applicant I've ever seen around here!"

The receptionist returned Calem's smile, "So, where do you plan on going with your apprentice?" she asked.

Calem placed a hand on the back of his head, "Well, I was planning on going to town with Wally here and getting some dinner," he answered.

The receptionist cringed, "You mean going _into_ town, Beaumont! Watch your words!" she scolded.

Calem smiled sheepishly, "Yeah, that's what I meant. I've never exactly been a brilliant orator..." he replied, laughing nervously, looking somewhat embarrassed.

The receptionist's expression softened, "Well, I'm glad that we've got that cleared up. You two can head out now, just be sure to have him back at the barracks by midnight," she said, flashing a warm smile.

"I'll be sure to do so!" Calem replied, leading Wally out the front door.

As they made their way out towards the city street, Wally looked up at Calem with a curious expression, "Why did the receptionist get upset when you first told her where we were going?" he asked innocently.

Calem laughed nervously, "You'll understand when you're older, child..." he responded, ruffling the boy's mint-green hair.

Wally wore a childish pout, "I'm not a child! I'm fourteen, dammit!" he whined.

Calem chuckled slightly, "Whatever. You're still a little too young to understand things like that," he stated, "Besides, you're still rather naive and innocent for your age..." he added with a pleased smile.

Wally continued to display his cross demeanor, "I am _not_ naive! I'm actually very smart if you gimme a chance!" he exclaimed.

Calem smiled and laughed, "You are so cute..." he spoke warmly to the boy.

Wally pouted with an expression that seemed to be somewhat of a blend between annoyance and embarrassment, "I am not cute..." he whimpered, "I'm a fierce warrior!" he added with forced pride.

Calem smiled warmly, "I'm sure that you'll prove yourself as one when you start your training."

Wally glanced up at his soon-to-be mentor, "You really think so?" he asked, eyes full of wonder.

Calem patted the kid on the head, "Of course! You seem very promising."

"Hmm..." Wally hummed cheerfully, walking with a little more spring in his step, seeming pleased with himself.

"So..." Wally started, "Where should we eat?" he asked.

"Oh yeah!" Calem responded, "We should be reaching the downtown area soon. There's a lot of food stalls and restaurants there, we should find something there," he added, "Tell me, Wally, would you rather buy some food from a stall and take it back with you or sit down somewhere and eat?" he asked.

Wally looked shyly down at his feet, "I would rather... sit down and eat..." he mumbled hesitantly.

Calem laughed pleasantly, "Sure! We can do that, kid!" he responded, smiling warmly and ruffling Wally's hair again.

Wally's face became increasingly flushed, once again turning the same red color as a strawberry. He hated being treated like a young child. He wanted to be seen as a mature adult, but he never was.

"Are you okay, Calem?" Wally asked curiously, taking note of his melancholy expression.

"Huh?" Calem asked himself quietly, shaking his head a few times, trying to bring himself back to reality.

"Are you alright?" Wally inquired again.

Calem forced a smile, "Yeah. I'm fine," he replied with false satisfaction.

Wally tilted his head to the right and gave Calem a puzzled glance, "Really? Because it looks to me like there's something on your mind..." he stated inquisitively, "To me, at least, it does..." he added with a slight timid giggle.

Calem sighed deeply, "I really don't like to talk about it..." he mumbled wistfully, "Besides, I doubt you'd understand, anyway..." he breathed dejectedly.

"Oh. Okay. I'm sorry," Wally replied quietly.

Calem's expression softened as he flashed a warm smile, "It's alright, Wally. No need to get upset."

"So can we find somewhere to eat? I'm starving!" Wally whined.

"Of course! Sorry, I keep getting distracted!" Calem responded, looking slightly embarrassed.

He then glanced to the right side of the street and noticed a stone brick building with a sign hanging above the door that read 'The Black Flame', "Hey, why don't we go here?" Calem stated brightly.

"You really think so?" Wally asked inquisitively.

"Yep!" Calem replied pleasantly, "I used to hang out here all the time a while back... when I had the time..." he added, shrugging slightly.

So they made their way towards the building's entrance and Wally soon noticed a tall woman standing in the front door, glaring at him.

"Uh... I don't that lady wants to let us in..." Wally spoke uneasily.

Calem walked out ahead of Wally, "Don't worry, kid. I got this!" he stated, winking at Wally as he approached the woman standing in the door and began chatting with her.

After a few minutes of discussion, the woman nodded her head and Calem motioned for Wally to follow him into the building. Wally obliged and chased after his guardian into the building.

As the two of them made their way into the building's interior, Wally took a brief look at his surroundings, noticing the dark wooden bar with a rack of bottles standing behind it, turned to Calem, and whispered to him, "You didn't tell me that this place was a bar... You know I'm not old enough to be in here..."

Calem quickly covered Wally's mouth and huddled closer to him, "Look, I convinced the woman at the front that you were sixteen, so I need you to make everyone here think that you're sixteen!" he spoke sternly.

"How?! I look barely twelve!" Wally exclaimed.

Calem glared at his apprentice, "What did I just say?!"

"Oh. I'm sorry..." Wally mumbled in a guilty tone, looking slightly embarrassed.

Calem's expression softened, "It's alright. Now let's find somewhere to sit down and eat."

So they sat down at a table, looked through the menu and ordered their food and drinks. As Wally's mind started to wander, he heard some familiar voices that caught his attention. He then glanced over towards the door and saw two familiar figures.

"I don't know why you insisted on hanging out here. Don't you think this place is a little... seedy?"

"Oh, stop whining! It seems like all you ever freaking do is complain!"

"Okay, whatever. I was just saying– Wait a sec! What's our little buddy doing here?"

"Also, who's that other guy sitting with him?"

"I dunno. Do you think that we should say 'hi' to him?"

"Well, duh!"

As Wally listened to their conversation, trying to get around his amnesia and figure out who the two voices and figures that he recognized so much belonged to, but he quickly got his answer when they approached his table.

One of them was a tall, curvy female with shoulder-length, sandy-brown hair, a pale complexion, sapphire-blue eyes, and was wearing a tight-fitting black bodysuit, common among rogues and spies, a black cape, a pair of combat-style, knee-high boots, and a black belt with two sheathed daggers attached to it.

The other one was young man who appeared to be about the same age as the woman – about eighteen. He had a much darker complexion, messy brown hair, brown eyes, and was wearing an indigo, long-sleeved, cotton shirt, black pants, and a silver pendant with the 'Alpha' emblem, the symbol of the Sea Goddess Kyogre.

"Hey, Wally! How ya doin'? Haven't seen you in a while!" the woman declared loudly and joyously.

Wally began fidgeting slightly, "Y-You're May... r-right?" he stuttered uneasily, "A-And y-you're Brendan... a-aren't you?" he added, this time addressing the man.

May's expression changed one of annoyance, "Don't play stupid with me, Wally! Of course I'm May! Who else would I be?!" she exclaimed, glaring at the boy.

Wally's ears turned pink as he fell silent.

May's face then shifted to a look of concern, "You really don't remember who I am, do you...?"

Wally gazed downward into his lap, "Yes..." a tiny voice replied.

May's visage morphed from concern to one of outright worry, "Oh my Arceus... How did this happen?" she asked sorrowfully.

"I-I d-don't kn-know..." Wally stuttered nervously as his cheeks blushed a bright red, "I was just woken up in the knight's infirmary by Calem here a few days ago," he stated as he gestured towards Calem.

"I didn't really have any memory of my past," Wally continued, "Aside from a few bits and pieces of my childhood, which apparently included your names and faces," he added with a slight nervous laugh.

"Well then, maybe we can help you get it back," Brendan responded with a warm smile.

"You'd really do that for me? Thank you. I would really appreciate it," Wally replied shyly, face flushing slightly, "You two really are such great friends..."

May laughed loudly, "Of course we would! That's what friends are for, right?" she countered jovially, ruffling the kid's mint-green hair.

A timid giggle escaped Wally's mouth as his face and ears turned a deep scarlet. He'd always enjoyed May's confident and exuberant personality, not to mention that he found her to be very pretty, but it was mostly her spunky and self-assured demeanor that made him simply being in her presence made him feel truly alive.

_Why can't I go outside and play with the other kids, Mommy?_

_You know why you can't do that!_

_Please? I just wanna play outside and make friends!_

_You can't! You might get sick! You might get hurt! We can't risk it!_

_Why do you have to ruin my life, Mommy?!_

_I know that it's hard to understand now, but we do this because we love you and want you to be around for a long time!_

This flashback made Wally feel increasingly distressed. Did he really have an imminent expiration date? Was he really dying?

But that thought burst like a bubble when Brendan chimed in, "Is it okay if we sit with you and chat while you eat?" he asked.

Calem nodded, "Of course!" he replied.

So they sat down at the table as Calem and Wally's food arrived, where Wally explained to his friends that Calem was going to train him to become a knight, among other things.

But after a while, Wally began to feel dizzy and felt a pounding headache and nausea come on.

"What was in the food I ordered?" Wally asked, words running together as he began to feel increasingly disoriented.

"Wait a sec!" May exclaimed, taking notice of Wally's state, "Calem! Did you give little Wally alcohol?!" she shouted angrily.

Calem wore an embarrassed expression on his face, "I thought he knew that what he ordered was alcoholic..." he responded sheepishly.

May scowled at the knight, "He just lost his memory! How the hell was he supposed to know that?!" she asserted loudly.

Wally slowly began to stand up, wobbling slightly, "Calem... I'm ready to go back to the barracks," he told his guardian.

Calem nodded, "Okay. I'll take you home..." he replied.

So he went up to the bar, payed for their meal, and began to lead Wally outside the building. Noticing that Wally could barely walk, he lifted the boy onto his back and carried him back to the barracks as the child slowly began to drift off to sleep, burying his face in the knight's shoulder.


	6. Chapter 6

Wally found himself standing at the shore at a large pond that seemed strange, yet familiar at the same time. The still blackness of the water was rather calming, yet somewhat... off, somehow.

He then turned his attention to the sky, which was inked a deep indigo, almost black, dotted with millions of bright stars, with a full moon glowing high in the sky, its light reflecting off the surface of the pond. He found this very peculiar, considering that the moon hadn't been anywhere near full the previous night.

But despite the serenity of the setting, Wally couldn't help but feel apprehensive. He couldn't see or hear anyone else around him, but he still couldn't shake the feeling that he wasn't alone, that he was being watched. Was there really someone else in his presence?

He soon got his answer.

"Hello, little Wally..." a haunting, ghostly voice spoke to the boy.

Wally turned around to see a ghoulish figure approximately the same size and shape as himself standing mere inches from his face. Sure, the person staring him down had a very ghastly appearance individually, but what really made Wally shiver was how similar this boy was to himself. He looked just like a mirror image of Wally, except with snowy-white hair and blood-red eyes, as well as claw-like fingers.

"Who... a-are y-you?" Wally forced meekly from his throat, a wave of sheer terror crashing over his psyche as he stared at his far more menacing reflection.

"Why me? I'm you," the kid replied, his voice sounding a lot like Wally's, but far more sinister and menacing.

"N-No! You can't possibly be me!" Wally stammered, trying to sound assertive, but failing miserably.

The child chuckled slightly, "Why not? How do you know that we aren't just two halves of one person?"

_How do I even respond to that?!_ Wally mentally panicked, feelings of distress welling up inside of him. How could he know for sure? He couldn't.

Wally opened his mouth to say something, but the being quickly brought his finger to Wally's mouth, as if to shush him. The boy stared directly into Wally's eyes, as if he was peering into the depths of Wally's soul.

He then felt the kid slip his hand inside the back of Wally's shirt and place it in the small of his back, making him jump slightly. This person's hand was freezing cold, as if his skin was made of ice. _They say that demons have frozen skin..._ Wally pondered in his mind, _Could this be a demon?_

"It's nice to see someone so full of life..." the demon spoke to him in an unearthly voice, causing Wally to tremble in fear where he stood, "Your skin is so warm... Your eyes are so bright... How nice it must be to have such vitality..."

Despite how scared he was, Wally felt a surge of confidence and looked the demon in the eye, saying sternly, "I'm going to ask you one more time. What is your name? Tell me your name!"

The demon gave Wally another intense gaze, his blood-red pools staring into the ice-blue ones of the more demure child.

"Call me Scorpius..." the demon hissed sharply, a serpentine smile creeping across his face, "Does that please you... to know my name?" he added, his eyes never leaving Wally's face.

"I-I g-guess so..." Wally stammered, trying to avoid letting Scorpius know how terrified he was, his intuition telling him to not let that on.

Scorpius simpered slyly at the green-haired boy, "I see..." he breathed in that enigmatic voice, "Riddle me this, then..." he continued, "Is that man you've attached yourself to... That man named Calem..." he began to trail off.

"W-What about him?" Wally replied nervously with a slight stutter, trying to keep his cool, despite the fact that he was completely at a loss for words as to how Scorpius had any idea who Calem even was, but then again, Scorpius claimed to be a part of him.

"Do you really find Calem trustworthy?" Scorpius finished his sentence.

Wally swallowed hard, "I don't know..." he responded. _Why am I so unsure of myself?_ He asked himself. _Why should some strange creep's opinion alter my own?! But Perseus tried to convince me of the same thing..._

"Do you or do you not?!" Scorpius snapped.

Wally took a deep breath, "Yes. I do. I find him completely trustworthy," he asserted.

Scorpius smirked at Wally, "I see... But how can you be sure that you're not going into this foolishly?" he challenged, "Shouldn't you be worried about that?"

"I don't see why I should..." Wally countered, "I don't see any reason not to trust him. He seems like a stand-up guy. Besides, he's the only one that can help me achieve my dream!"

Scorpius chuckled slightly, "Oh well, it seems that you're convinced that he's worthy of your trust, and I guess I can't convince you otherwise. But you should remember this... When you turn men into angels, you sow the seeds for them to become demons..." he spoke in the same mystifying tone.

Wally opened his mouth to say something, but Scorpius shushed him, "You really should consider what I've said about your 'friend', it may just save your life one of these days..." he hissed.

Wally let out a slight whimper as Scorpius placed his fingers over Wally's eyes, forcing his eyelids down, "Sleep, young prince," Scorpius whispered in Wally's ear, squeezing his shoulder, somehow causing the youngster's body to go limp, "I promise that this will all make sense after we meet a few more times..."

"Hey, Wally... It's time to wake up..." a soft voice spoke to the green-haired child. A rather light groan escaped Wally's throat, his eyes fluttering slightly.

He sat up gradually, leaning his head on his right hand in response to his pounding headache, swallowing hard in order to keep himself from vomiting.

"Wake up, Wally. Training starts today."

Wally glanced towards the foot of his bed and saw the source of the voice whom had awoken him, Calem, standing right there at the edge of his bed.

"Doing alright?" Calem asked sweetly.

"I'm not feeling so hot..." Wally stated, trying his damnedest to keep himself from puking all over his bed sheets.

"What exactly is wrong?" Calem questioned kindly.

Wally sighed deeply, "My head is killing me and I feel like I'm gonna throw up..." he moaned.

Calem responded with a pleasant laugh, "A little hungover, are you, little Wally?" he inquired politely.

"Don't talk so loud..." Wally whined, head throbbing

"Oh. Sorry," Calem apologized

Wally scowled at Calem, "I hope you realize that this is all your fault! Why the hell didn't you stop me from downing all those drinks?!"

Calem smiled nervously, "Well, I thought you knew that those drinks were alcoholic..." he replied sheepishly.

Wally continued to give Calem the same dirty look, "I barely even remember my life before I ended up here! How the hell am I supposed to know that I was drinking alcohol?!" he exclaimed irritably.

Calem chuckled abashedly, "Heh, point taken," he responded with a slight blush of embarrassment.

"Don't talk so loud..." Wally griped.

"Oh. Sorry," Calem apologized.

"As you were saying?"

"Well, you're gonna need to get outta bed soon," he continued, placing a hand on Wally's shoulder, "Your battle training starts today."

"Oh... Can it wait?!" Wally moaned, "I feel really nasty this morning! Can't I take a sick day?!" he asked irritably.

"Sorry, Wally," Calem replied apologetically, "But the higher-ups know a hangover when they see one, and my superiors will fry me if they find out I gave you alcohol!"

"Shit..." Wally grumbled under his breath, "My first day as a knight's apprentice and _this_ is how it starts..."

Calem smiled sympathetically, "How about I check the infirmary for a healing potion that'll alleviate your symptoms?" he suggested, "That should help you out in several ways."

"Would you really do that? Thanks!" Wally responded gratefully.

Calem ruffled the youngster's hair, "Well, I'll do that while you get ready. Meet me out in the training yard," he stated graciously, making his way towards the bedroom door.

A thought popped into Wally's head, "Wait a sec. Can I ask you something, Calem?" he questioned.

Calem stopped in his place and turned back to look at Wally, "Hmm?"

"Do you think that it's possible..." Wally started, "For someone to be born with a second soul... That they didn't know existed... until it appears to them in an unexpected manner..."

Calem froze upon hearing these words. _Can Wally be the one they want? Is he the one that I have to surrender to my masters? It can't be! Don't let it be! Please, Arceus! Don't let him be the one!_

But Calem couldn't let the little one know what was really going on behind the scenes. Honestly, he really does care for Wally, but if he had to turn him over to them... He just couldn't bear the pain...

"Hmm. Never thought about it like that," he countered, trying as hard as possible to keep his cool, "Why do ask? Did you read it in a book the other day?" he inquired dishonestly, knowing full well what Wally was actually talking about.

"Uh! Um! N-Nevermind!" Wally stuttered, his cheeks turning a deep shade of red.

Calem let out a friendly laugh, immediately taken in by Wally's cuteness, temporarily forgetting his distress, "You get ready. I'll be waiting for you out in the training yard. Meet me out there and hopefully I'll be able to find the right medicine for your symptoms."

Calem made his way to the infirmary, hoping to find the right cure. Who thought that a few glasses of sangria would cause the boy so much pain...

Wally made his way out to the training yard, head pounding painfully. Once he arrived there, he immediately noticed Calem holding a glass vial of cyan-colored liquid in his left hand.

"Hey there, Wally!" Calem chirped, a warm smile creeping across his face.

As Wally approached Calem, the older male handed him the vial, "Drink some of this," Calem spoke to the boy, "This should make you feel better."

"What's this?" Wally asked curiously.

"It's a healing potion," Calem replied, "Specifically a painkiller and nausea treatment. A lot of the knights jokingly call it a 'hangover cure'." he added with a slight giggle.

Wally glanced at the vial in his hand, "Okay... Bottoms up, I guess..." he spoke as he swallowed the liquid, which instantaneously relieved him of his symptoms.

"Feel better?" Calem asked kindly.

Wally nodded.

"Well, that's awesome," Calem responded contentedly. He then began to walk away from the child, "Lemme go get your weapon ring. I'll be right back. Feel free to visit with the other apprentices while you wait."

"Wait a sec!" Wally called after the man, "How do you know that it'll fit my finger?" he questioned, raising an eyebrow.

Calem smiled, "No need to worry about that," he responded politely, "Once a weapon ring is associated with someone, it'll automatically mold to your finger," he added as he walked off.

It bothered Wally to be separated from the man whom had taken him under his wing, considering that he didn't know anyone here. Hopefully things wouldn't go too badly.

But he'd have no such luck.

"Who the hell are you?!" a whiny voice shouted at him from behind.

Wally turned around to see a teenage boy about the same age as himself, perhaps a year older, with a baby face, chin-length orange hair, and silver eyes.

"Answer my damn question! Who the hell are you?!" the kid repeated.

Wally swallowed hard, "My name is Wally Kincaid. I'm a new apprentice," he responded uneasily.

The orange-haired boy looked Wally over and glared at him, "Ha! You've got no chance! There's no way that a scrawny little bitch like yourself could handle something as tough as a knight apprenticeship!" he scoffed at Wally.

That last statement really made Wally's blood boil, especially since this kid wasn't really in any position to condemn him for that.

Wally scowled back at the boy, "Why are you calling me scrawny?! You're not much bigger than I am!" he shot back.

The boy turned up his nose at Wally, "So what?! At least I've got some ability under my belt! You on the other hand... you've got absolutely no chance!"

Wally started seething in fury, "What makes you think that I've got no ability?! You just met me! Y'know what?! I'll show you what I can do!" he screamed as he cold-cocked the kid right in the mouth.

The boy's next reaction made it seem as if Wally had just chopped off his hand with an axe. He began bawling and wailing like an infant in desperate need of feeding.

"Why did you punch me?!" the kid screamed and sobbed, "What did I ever do to you?!"

Wally quickly noticed there were absolutely no tears on the orange-haired youth's face. This bastard was clearly trying to drum up sympathy. But, then again, maybe Wally was being a bit cruel by punching him.

"What the hell is going on here?!" a voice called out to the boys, a voice that Wally instantly recognized as Calem's. Wally froze in his place, fearing that he'd be blamed for this.

The boy continued his fake sniveling, "He punched me! He punched me in the mouth!" he wailed.

To Wally's surprise, Calem glared at the youth and said, "Don't bullshit me, Trevor! What did you do to Wally here?!"

Trevor continued to feign sobbing, "I don't know what you're talking about! I didn't do anything wrong! It's all his fault!"

Calem continued to scowl at Trevor, "Oh, stop that fake crying! In the whole year you've been here, I've learned all your tricks inside and out, backwards and forwards!" he then turned to Wally, "Now, tell me, what did Trevor here do you?" he asked sympathetically.

Wally gulped, "T-Trevor started calling me nasty names..." he stuttered, shuffling his feet slightly... "Telling me that I had no chance as a knight... Calling me a bitch... Stomping on my dreams despite barely knowing me... I was deeply hurt by his insults... So I clocked him in the mouth..."

"You see?! He admits it!" Trevor yelled, gritting his teeth, "Punish him! Punish him!" he continued to shout.

Calem rolled his eyes, "I don't see why I should. I've seen the way that you treat the other apprentices, and it's the kind of behavior that's eventually gonna come back and bite you in the ass!" he scolded the ginger-haired youth, "Now go back to your training, and leave the other apprentices alone!"

Trevor gazed upward at Calem with a venomous expression, as if to challenge him, but quickly broke eye contact, grumbled bitterly and stormed off, apparently having no real argument.

After Trevor exited Calem and Wally's presence, the green-haired child shuffled his feet anxiously, "I'm sorry about punching him... I just lost my temper..." he mumbled timidly.

Calem smiled, "It's alright. Trust me, that boy brings more trouble than he's worth. He's caused a lot of problems with other apprentices for a while now. Believe me, it's about time that someone put him in his place."

Wally looked up at Calem with bright eyes, "So... About my weapon ring..."

"Oh yeah!" Calem replied, pulling a green energy out of his pocket, "Hold out your hand. Are you right-handed or left-handed?"

"Right."

"Alright. Hold out your right hand, be sure to spread out your fingers," he ordered. Wally complied.

Then, as the energy was released from Calem's hand, it flew towards Wally's hand and coiled around his index finger, eventually solidifying into a silver colored, snake-like band with a emerald green stone set in the center.

Wally glanced up at the older male, "So, how do I summon the weapon?" he questioned.

"You just have to will it," Calem replied, "Go ahead. Try it. Be sure to give yourself plenty of room so you don't hurt yourself."

Wally held out his arm to the side, closed his eyes, and poured his intentions into the ring, causing it to transform into a simple short sword.

"Okay," Calem started, "Now, to start off, let's have you test out different sword strokes against a training dummy," he continued, gesturing towards a training mannequin stuffed with straw.

Wally approached the mannequin, ready to show the others what he's made out of.

"Alright," Calem spoke, "Let's try some stabs and slashes."

So Wally began stabbing the dummy, hoping he was doing it right.

"You need to put the rest of your body into it," Calem ordered, "Try lunging at it a little more."

Wally followed Calem's directions, feeling his chest tighten up, his breaths becoming labored and heavy, his body beginning to feel weak and dizzy, but continued to press on, ready to prove himself.

"Okay," Calem continued, "Let's try some slashes now," he charged.

Then Wally began slashing the mannequin, working as hard he could to do as much damage to the dummy, feeling his knees start to become wobbly.

"That's good!" Calem praised, "Now slash it at full force!"

So Wally raised his sword and slashed the mannequin as forceful as possible, managing to sever the body of it in two.

"Wow!" Calem exclaimed, "I've never seen an entry-level apprentice manage to do that! Especially on the first day!" he congratulated.

_Wow... I did it..._ Wally thought to himself, gasping for breath as his sword transformed back into its ring form, _I really did it..._

Calem approached the child, patting him on the back, causing Wally to feel one last burst of accomplishment before collapsing onto the ground.

"Wally!"


	7. Chapter 7

Wally came to in the barracks' infirmary, his muscles feeling weak, his head aching slightly. He sat up in bed, trying to clear out the haze from his mind.

"Oh, you're awake," a voice spoke to the boy from outside the infirmary door, causing him to jump slightly. It was Calem, peeking at him from around the doorway.

"What the hell... Oh, it's you," Wally mumbled in response as he recovered from being startled by the older male.

Calem smiled warmly as he approached the child's bed, "It's nice to see that you're doing better..."

Wally gazed downward into his lap, "I'm sorry, Calem..." he spoke, "I don't know why I couldn't keep it together..."

Calem bent his body in order to make eye contact with the youngster, "It's alright," he responded, "In fact, I was extremely impressed by your performance. I've never seen any other beginner apprentices actually cut a training dummy in half! Especially on the first day!"

Wally felt a wave of joy crash over him, "Really?! I'm really that good?" he replied with a look of wonder in his eyes.

Calem nodded, "Yeah..." he responded, clearly taking pride in his student's accomplishment.

But then, his expression morphed from one of delight to one of concern, "However... I still worry about the stress that training is putting on your body..." he spoke apprehensively.

Wally wore a puzzled look on his face, "What do you mean?"

Calem sighed, "You ended up collapsing after basic sword practice against a mannequin. That's entry-level shit," he spoke solemnly, "Think about it. If you collapse from the physical stress on the battlefield, and no one is there to help you, it's very likely that you won't make it out alive..."

Wally's optimistic visage changed to one of defeat, "So, you don't think that I'm cut out for this?"

"I'm not saying that!" Calem defended, "I'm just saying that you need to know your limits. You can't push yourself too hard, considering that your asthma leaves your body severely compromised," he added somberly.

"But... but..." Wally whimpered, "Didn't your superiors say it was okay for me to do this, even though I have asthma?"

Calem let out a deep sigh, "The thing is, when I submitted your application, I didn't disclose to them that you have asthma..." he responded earnestly, "It's just that I could see in your eyes how badly you wanted this, so I didn't tell them, considering that your application could've very well been rejected if they knew."

Wally glanced at Calem with a melancholy expression, "So... you lied to get me into a position that I wasn't qualified for?" he asked wistfully.

"I didn't mean to say that you weren't qualified..." Calem assured the youngster, "Quite the contrary, actually. You're genuinely good with a sword. We were all very impressed," he added with a pleased smile.

Wally's eyes brightened, "You really think so?"

Calem nodded, "Certainly," he stated, "I can easily tell that you're gonna go far in this profession, kid," he added, ruffling the child's spring-green hair.

Wally's wonder-filled expression intensified, "Wow! This can't be real! I'm so excited!" he exclaimed.

Calem smiled warmly, "Well that's good to hear," he responded, letting out a pleased laugh, "You rest up now. We'll resume training tomorrow," he added, patting the boy on the shoulder and leaving the room.

Silver entered the Aquarius Temple, Mianna's highest Kyogrian temple, not quite sure what was drawing him there. He just had a feeling that he needed to be there.

As he made his way towards the altar, he noticed a young man with his back to him who appeared to be of similar age to himself, perhaps a few months to a year younger, with messy brown hair and moderately tan skin, and was wearing an indigo long-sleeved shirt and black trousers.

"Hmm?" the brunet hummed inquisitively as he turned his head to look at Silver, big brown eyes staring him down.

"Hello?" Silver asked curiously.

"Hey," the young man replied, a warm smile creeping across his face as he approached the archer. Silver almost immediately took notice of the silver 'Alpha' pendant hanging from his neck on a black satin cord.

"There aren't any ceremonies going on here anytime soon," the young man spoke, "So what exactly brings you here, stranger?"

Silver shrugged, "I don't know, really..." he mumbled, "I just felt drawn to this particular temple tonight," he added as sat down on a bench placed near the altar for the convenience of the spectators of temple rituals.

"Ah... I see..." the brunet pondered, "So what's your name, anyway?" he inquired.

"Silver Kain Ruby is the name," Silver replied, "And you?"

The young man glanced at the ceiling, "Well if we're talking full names here..." he started, "Then I'm Brendan Lee Birch," he added with a smile.

"Hm. Birch. By any chance are you related to this temple's High Priestess, Celestina Birch?" Silver asked.

"Actually yes. I'm her son," Brendan replied.

"Well then, it's nice to meet you," Silver responded. He reached into his coat and pulled out a pocket-sized notebook out of a hidden pouch on the inside of his coat and began flipping through the notes he'd written down at various previous moments.

"What'cha got written down there?" Brendan asked. Silver glanced upwards and noticed Brendan hovering over him, staring at his writings.

Silver immediately shut his notebook, slightly peeved at Brendan for invading his privacy.

"Who's Lyra?" Brendan asked out of curiosity.

"Just an acquaintance of mine..." Silver replied, still somewhat annoyed that Brendan had read personal things out of his private notes.

"Did I upset you at all?" Brendan asked nervously when he noticed that Silver was glaring at him, backing away from the redhead slightly.

Silver sighed, "It's alright," he responded, "I just think that my personal journal writings should kept a private affair..."

"Oh. Sorry," Brendan replied, looking slightly embarrassed.

Silver glanced up at the painting of Kyogre on the ceiling, "You know, I can't put my finger on exactly why, something about our conversation makes me think of this little boy I met in the knights' library..." he spoke.

"Little boy?" Brendan asked, "What would a kid that young be in the knights' library? Also, what were you doing there? No offense, but you don't exactly look like a knight to me..." he added.

"None taken," Silver responded warmly, "I'm actually an archer. Knights and archers share the same living quarters," he explained.

"So what about the kid?" Brendan inquired, "The only reason I can think of him being there is if he's an apprentice, but I thought that the minimum age for apprenticeship is thirteen. A thirteen-year-old isn't a 'little boy'..."

"Well, I'm told the child was fourteen, even though he looked more like he was ten..." Silver pondered, "Calem always seemed like the kinda guy who'd stretch the truth on occasion..." he continued.

_Calem? Can he mean the same guy that May and I found Wally with at The Black Flame? Could Silver be talking about Wally?_ Brendan asked himself, "So... Tell me more about this kid..." he responded.

Silver glanced up at the ceiling again for a short moment, "He seemed rather shy. He was cute kid, had big blue eyes and a head full of spring-green hair. He looked rather pale, almost as if he were sick," he stated, "He was real small, like I said, looked like a child, seemed a little on the chubby side, kinda smelled like chocolate..." he added

"Ah... I see..." Brendan pondered, "Did his name happen to be 'Wally'?" he asked curiously.

"Now that you mention it, yeah! That was his name!" Silver replied, "How'd you know?" he asked.

Brendan glanced at the wall opposite of Silver, "He's a close friend of mine," he started, "I've had my concerns about the little guy since he lost his memory and joined up as a knight's apprentice," he added with a slight twinge of worry in his voice.

_Oh, so that's what Kris meant when she called him 'Mr. Amnesia'..."_ Silver made a mental note of.

"Well, I've heard that he had an excellent first day of training, although he did pass out after his training exercise," he replied, "Hopefully his endurance will improve with further practice..."

Brendan sighed uneasily, "I was afraid of that..." he responded as he glanced down at the floor.

"What do you mean?" Silver asked.

Brendan drew another deep breath, "Wally's never been that strong when it comes to his health, and I get really worried when he exerts his body too hard..." he answered in a slightly distressed tone.

"I see..." Silver contemplated. His focus then returned to the ornate architecture that made up the structure of the temple, causing him to enter into a bit of a daydreaming state.

"Deification," he blurted out, whilst still in his slightly out-of-focus state.

"Excuse me?" Brendan inquired.

"Deification," Silver repeated, "Making oneself into a God..." he added, "The idea that humans or even Pokémon are simply one step away from becoming Gods ourselves," he continued, "Perhaps you've heard of it, if you're as highly educated as the clergy and their families supposedly are..."

Brendan scowled at the redhead, "Do you have any idea how blasphemous it is to say something like that?!" he scolded.

"Hmph. Whatever," Silver replied, chuckling smugly, cocking his head, and flashing Brendan a sly grin, "I always know a Mamma's Boy when I spot one..." he added in a haughty tone.

"Bite me!" Brendan snapped, fuming at Silver's snarky comment.

Silver let out a cocky laugh, "Heh, looks like I lit a bit of a fire under your ass, didn't I, Brendan?" he retorted snidely.

"That's it! Subject changed!" Brendan exclaimed in annoyance.

"Whatever you say, Brendan," Silver responded with a sly smile and a slight eye roll.

But, in reality, this wasn't the first time that Brendan had entertained the concept of deification. About a year ago, while studying, he'd stumbled across the term 'deification' in the writings of a theologian from countless years prior. He was interested enough to learn more, but once he brought up the topic to his mother, she immediately threw the book away and ordered him to never ask about the subject again, so he knew full well that the topic was strictly off-limits.

"Earth to Brendan!" Silver barked at brunet.

"Uh..." Brendan groaned as his mind came back down from the sky and he returned his attention to the redhead, "Oh..."

"Took a little trip to La-La Land, didn't you?" Silver remarked snidely, adding a slight chuckle.

"I… guess..." Brendan replied, his mind still feeling a bit hazy.

"Anything else on your mind, Brendan?" Silver inquired curiously.

So they began chatting about various subjects, the universe hatching from an egg, how vast the universe was in general, the idea that different planets had their own species of Pokémon, or even their own pantheons of Gods, all of that.

"Silver?!" a voice called out from the temple doorway. The guys turned their attention to the source of the voice, a young man with blue hair and wearing archer's clothing similar to Silver's, except in different colors. It was Falkner, a fellow archer that Silver helped train when he first joined.

"Hey, what brings you out here?" Silver asked the blue-haired young man.

Falkner glared at the redhead, "Well, my superiors sent me out here to get you because you were out too long after curfew, so I had to scour the city to find you!" he scolded.

Silver glanced up at the Clockwork timepiece on the wall, noticing that it was well after midnight, "Alright, guess it's time to head back to the barracks..." he spoke as he stood up and headed for the door, "It was nice talking to you, Brendan," he said to the brunet, "Perhaps I'll see you again one of these days..."

"I have a feeling that we will," Brendan replied with a slight smile as Silver walked out the door.

As the archers exited the temple and made their way back to the barracks, Falkner glanced at Silver and said, "Well Silver, I didn't know that you were a religious man..."

"Not really any more than the average person in this country..." Silver replied, "I just felt drawn to that temple tonight..." he added. He was still bewildered on why he felt the need to go there anyway, but he was sure that he'd come across that Brendan boy again.

Wally was sleeping in his bed in the knight's barracks, sleeping surprisingly well. At least, he was, until loud footsteps and aggravated grumbling interrupted it. Wally flipped onto his other side and tried to ignore the noise. Perhaps it was just the knights shuffling about the barracks.

Or maybe not...

Wally felt a strong tug on his shoulder, feeling as if it was about to pull him straight off the bed. He glanced up at the source, still rather dazed from being woken up so abruptly. It was a heavy-set teenage boy of similar age to himself, perhaps another apprentice.

"Whataya want?!" Wally grumbled groggily as the boy yanked him off the bed and onto his knees.

"Just come with me!" the boy scolded as he continued to drag Wally over to the bedroom door.

Wally tried to struggle against the other boy's grip, but to no avail. He'd always been smaller and weaker than other boys his age, so he eventually decided to let the other teen pull him wherever he planned to take him.

They eventually made their way out to the training yard, where Wally was dragged over towards a large group of other teenagers, most likely the other apprentices, where he caught a glimpse of the one he did _not_ want to see.

"Thanks for bringing the Wurmple out here, Tierno," Trevor spoke to the other boy, with an overt snideness directed at Wally.

"W-What is going on? What am I doing here?" Wally asked anxiously.

Trevor smirked at the green-haired boy, "Naive little Kincaid..." he spoke slyly, "You've somehow managed to trick the adults into thinking you could handle this, but you have yet to prove yourself to us..."

"W-What d-do you mean?" Wally stammered fearfully.

Trevor flashed an arrogant simper at the kid, "Just a little... initiation rite..."

"I-Initiation?" Wally whimpered anxiously.

Trevor simply chuckled contemptuously, while Wally continued to wear a fearful and confused expression on his face.

"I-I still d-don't what you mean..." Wally stammered uneasily.

Trevor just smirked, glanced at Tierno, and snapped his fingers, resulting in Tierno twisting Wally's arms behind his back and forcing him down onto his knees. Trevor walked away for a second, only to return with part of a tree branch in his hand.

_Oh no…_ Wally thought fearfully.

Sure enough, Trevor struck Wally across the shoulder with the branch, the wound stinging like hell, causing him to wince in pain.

Trevor chuckled a bit and then struck the green-haired boy again, this time across his chest, wearing a sly smirk on his face as Wally continued to cringe in agony.

Trevor's eyes flashed sadistically as he continued to beat Wally with the stick as the green-haired male tried his damnedest not to cry and let the ginger-haired male win.

"Stop!" a female voice called out. The boys glanced at the crowd of apprentices and found the source of the voice. A moderately dark-skinned teenage girl with brown hair tied off into four pigtails and jade-green eyes.

"You can't keep beating this poor kid!" she exclaimed, "Why is necessary, anyway?"  
"Shut the hell up, Shauna!" Trevor snapped at the girl, "If he can't handle this, then he's sure as hell not cut out to be a knight!"

Shauna stomped up to Trevor, "Don't lie to me! You just wanna make an innocent person suffer!" she countered.

"You can't tell me what to do!" Trevor retorted.

Shauna crossed her arms, "Well then, do you want me to bring this to the higher-ups?" she scolded, "Because I sure as hell will if you keep abusing this poor boy!"

Trevor sighed, "Fine, I guess you win," he grumbled, "But only if Kincaid here is willing to keep his mouth shut as well..." he added snidely, "Whataya say, Kincaid? Make this our little secret, and I won't continue to subject you to this, alright?"

"Y-Yes… W-Whatever you s-say..." Wally replied, trembling fearfully.

"I'm glad we could we could come to an agreement," Trevor responded smugly.

He then nodded at Tierno, signaling for the larger boy to release his grip on Wally.

"Now get the hell outta here, Kincaid!" Trevor shouted after Wally as he made his way back to the main building, "You _really_ don't know what'll happen if the adults find out about this!"


End file.
